I do want to believe what you're saying because it means fewer life-years lost but... the other explanation is that covid plus the countermeasures to it really

I do want to believe what you're saying because it means fewer life-years lost but... the other explanation is that covid plus the countermeasures to it really did impact people's health (not just the fatalities) and increased net mortality. We can check back in a few years but so far this explanation seems likelier to me.